James Holmes – Colorado theater shooting

One of Colorado's most infamous prisoners, theater shooter James Holmes, has been transferred to another prison, but officials won't tell the public or the families of the people he killed where or why.

The move — which might have sent Holmes out of state or to a federal prison — was part of an exchange agreement with another prison, Colorado Department of Corrections spokeswoman Adrienne Jacobson said on Jan. 20, 2016.

It is at least the third time in five months that prison officials have moved Holmes, who was sentenced in August to life without parole for killing 12 people and injuring 70 others when he opened fire in a crowded suburban Denver movie theater in 2012.

He had been held most recently in San Carlos Correctional Facility in Pueblo after being transferred from the Colorado State Penitentiary in Canon City, the state's highest security prison, where Holmes had his own cell and was heavily supervised.

Several victims testified during Holmes' sentencing that they didn't want him imprisoned in California, closer to his parents who live near San Diego.

Deputy District Attorney Lisa Teesch-Maguire told victims in an email that prison officials assured her last year they wouldn't move him to California, but they wouldn't elaborate. She said the latest move was likely done for his security.

didn't want him imprisoned in California, closer to his parents who live near San Diego.

Deputy District Attorney Lisa Teesch-Maguire told victims in an email that prison officials assured her last year they wouldn't move him to California, but they wouldn't elaborate. She said the latest move was likely done for his security. (AP)

James Holmes is shown in this September 9, 2015 handout photo provided by the Colorado Department of Corrections September 11, 2015. Convicted mass murderer James Holmes has been moved into a high-security unit at a Colorado penitentiary where he will begin serving his life sentences for killing 12 people at a cinema in 2012, corrections officials said September 11, 2015. REUTERS/Colorado Department of Corrections/Handout via Reuters ATTENTION EDITORS - FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE AUTHENTICITY, CONTENT, LOCATION OR DATE OF THIS IMAGE. THIS PICTURE IS DISTRIBUTED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

Colorado movie massacre gunman James Holmes leaves court for the last time before beginning his life sentence with no chance of parole after a hearing in Centennial, Colorado

Colorado movie massacre gunman James Holmes (C) leaves court for the last time before beginning his life sentence with no chance of parole after a hearing in Centennial, Colorado August 26, 2015. The judge in the Colorado movie massacre trial will condemn Holmes to 12 life sentences and potentially thousands more years in prison on Wednesday, and is expected to address Holmes directly as the proceedings conclude. Holmes was found guilty in July of murdering 12 people and wounding 70 when he opened fire inside a packed midnight screening of a Batman film at a multiplex in the Denver suburb of Aurora. REUTERS/RJ Sangosti/Pool

Shooting victim Caleb Medley (L) leaves Arapahoe County Justice Center after a verdict was delivered in the trial of James Holmes on July 16, 2015 in Centennial, Colorado

Shooting victim Caleb Medley (L) leaves Arapahoe County Justice Center after a verdict was delivered in the trial of James Holmes on July 16, 2015 in Centennial, Colorado (AFP Photo/Theo Stroomer)

James Holmes – Colorado theater shooting

A view inside Courtroom 201, where jury selection in the trial of Aurora movie theater shootings defendant James Holmes is to begin on Jan. 20, 2015, at the Arapahoe County District Court in Centennial, Colorado, January 15, 2015. Jury selection is expected to take several weeks to a few months. (REUTERS/Brennan Linsley/Pool)

File photo of James Holmes sitting in court for an advisement hearing at the Arapahoe County Justice Center in Centennial

James Holmes sits in court for an advisement hearing at the Arapahoe County Justice Center in Centennial, Colorado in this June 4, 2013 file photo. In a rushed courtroom, lawyers show home movies of Holmes as a seemingly normal child before falling prey to severe mental illness, as part of their defense in an attempt to save his life. Holmes could face the death penalty if convicted of murdering 12 people and wounding 70 others by opening fire inside a suburban Denver multiplex in July 2012. REUTERS/Andy Cross/Pool/Files

Larry Trujillo, Denver's former fire chief and Colorado's director of Homeland Security, walks out of Arapahoe County District Court with his wife Michelle Trujillo in Centennial

Larry Trujillo (R), Denver's former fire chief and Colorado's director of Homeland Security, walks out of Arapahoe County District Court with his wife Michelle Trujillo in Centennial, Colorado April 27, 2015. The Trujillo's daughter Tayler Trujillo was uninjured when she fled the gunfire in the Aurora Shootings. Colorado's long-awaited cinema massacre trial began on Monday with opening statements in which jurors were asked to decide whether gunman James Holmes was insane when he killed a dozen moviegoers in 2012, or a calculating mass murderer who deserves execution. Holmes pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to multiple charges of murder and attempted murder for opening fire inside a midnight screening of a "Batman" movie at a Denver-area multiplex in July 2012. Twelve people were killed and another 70 were wounded in the shooting. REUTERS/Evan Semon

Century Aurora 16 movie theater is pictured in Colorado

Century Aurora 16 movie theater is pictured in Colorado April 27, 2015. Colorado's long-awaited cinema massacre trial will begin on Monday with jurors asked to decide whether gunman James Holmes was insane when he killed a dozen moviegoers in 2012, or a calculating mass murderer who deserves execution. Arapahoe County District Court Judge Carlos Samour has said he expects the trial to take four months.REUTERS/Evan Semon

James Holmes – Colorado theater shooting

Larry Trujillo (R), Denver's former fire chief and Colorado's director of Homeland Security, walks out of Arapahoe County District Court with his wife Michelle Trujillo in Centennial, Colorado April 27, 2015. The Trujillo's daughter Tayler Trujillo was uninjured when she fled the gunfire in the Aurora Shootings. Colorado's long-awaited cinema massacre trial began on Monday with opening statements in which jurors were asked to decide whether gunman James Holmes was insane when he killed a dozen moviegoers in 2012, or a calculating mass murderer who deserves execution. Holmes pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to multiple charges of murder and attempted murder for opening fire inside a midnight screening of a "Batman" movie at a Denver-area multiplex in July 2012. Twelve people were killed and another 70 were wounded in the shooting. (REUTERS/Evan Semon)

James Holmes – Colorado theater shooting

Rita Paulina, shot twice in the arm and once in the leg, leaves the second court appearance of James Holmes, the accused shooter in the July 20, 2012 theater shootings in Centennial, Colorado July 30, 2012. Holmes, a former graduate student accused of opening fire at a Denver-area screening of the latest "Batman" film, killing 12 people, was formally charged on Monday with 24 counts of first-degree murder and 116 counts of attempted murder. (REUTERS/Rick Wilking)